Chiron & north node in aries: reclaiming personal power

I don’t know about you, but that Aries Full Moon last week hit me like a ton of bricks. I’ve been trying to think about why exactly it felt so impactful, and a lot of it has to do with the way the transits activated my natal chart (my Aries 8th house did take a beating). But there’s also a deeper reason why this lunation felt so important. The activation of the North Node and Chiron in Aries pointed to some ongoing lessons that will play out on a collective level the next few years—while changing us all personally, forever.

Let’s get into the technical breakdown of what happened last week, and then we’ll dive into some of my thoughts about why it’s so important and what it could mean. Thursday, October 17th, the fiery Full Moon in Aries opposed the Sun in Libra and formed a gnarly Grand Cross with Pluto at the final degree of Capricorn and Mars in Cancer. To make it extra spicy, Chiron, the asteroid representing our deepest wound, was conjunct the Full Moon in Aries, hanging out in the same house as the transiting North Node, representing the direction of our soul’s evolution or purpose.

This configuration highlighted building pressure in the cardinal sectors of our charts that had to be released, whatever the consequences. The full moon’s exposure of the nature of our truest desires cast into light tensions created by differing expectations of others, internal resistance from our own established patterns of behavior, and defensive instincts of self-preservation. Mars, the planet of war, anger, and violence, was the ruler of this full moon. Personally, I witnessed multiple explosive ruptures of relationships, while on the public stage, Israel announced the killing of Palestinian resistance leader and head of Hamas since 2017, Yahya Sinwar.

The cardinal signs are initiators, and this full moon began as much as it destroyed. Although full moons are associated with endings, illumination, and the completion of cycles, the presence of the Full Moon in Aries—together with the North Node and Chiron—heralded new beginnings, too. Unfortunately, these beginnings came at a price: the wholesale dissolution of existing relationships, patterns of engagement, perceptions of self, and even, in some cases, life itself.

Some ideas (and people) live on through death, as is evident with figures like Sinwar, who instantly became a martyr. As we witness more than a year of genocide in Gaza, it is clear that the incomprehensible sacrifices of the Palestinian people have not been enough to stop the bloodshed. Entire bloodlines are erased, in real time, as we across the world watch via smartphones. The hypocrisy of the so-called “rules-based international order” has been harshly revealed. Millions protest, and yet, the violence goes on. Democracy, human rights, and international community are nice concepts, but power—and the ability to wield it via force—has been revealed as the true determining factor of the fate of this moment.

Domination through violence is not a new phenomenon, but the fact that the representation of the collective unhealed wound (Chiron) has been transiting the sign of Aries (ruled by Mars) since 2019 (and will remain here until 2027) indicates that this brutal aspect of reality will become increasingly impossible to ignore. Chiron in Aries speaks to the wound of individualism—the search for true identity, the fear of being oneself, the pain of social rejection, and the overwhelm of (perceived) powerlessness. Fear of violence and retribution for our mere existence—whether that violence is literal or symbolic—is rising to the surface of the collective psyche for processing.

The North Node, on the other hand, asks us to face this wound in order to become more closely aligned with our collective and individual destinies. There is no forward evolution without reckoning with these concepts of identity, bravery, independence, and personal agency. This will require that we take the initiative to be radically honest with ourselves about the ways in which we have been performing for others, cowering from self-leadership, clinging to codependency, and surrendering our own power in an attempt to stay small, unnoticed, and safe from harm. These strategies will no longer work.

It is significant that this lunation squared Pluto (the planet representing death, destruction, and regeneration) in the anaretic, or final, degree of Capricorn (signifying traditional hierarchies of power, authority, and material reality). Pluto has been in Capricorn since 2008 and will move into Aquarius (representing humanity, innovation, and visions of the future) on November 19th of this year. Looking at historical events corresponding to the last time Pluto entered Aquarius hints at the changes to soon come. To name just a few major examples, during the last iteration of this transit from 1762 to 1778, the world witnessed the upheaval of the French Revolution and the destruction of the more than 1,200 year old French monarchy; the advent of the Industrial Revolution, which forever transformed the meaning and modes of worldwide economic and social production through the development of technology and advancement of international trade; and the success of the American Revolutionary War and the establishment of the United States of America, arguably the world’s most powerful hegemon.

There is tons more to dig into when it comes to the impacts of this Pluto transit on a collective level, but I want to return to its relevance for us as individuals. Pluto will be transforming the way that we as individuals relate to the collective and ideals of humanity as well as its creations (through technology, art, culture, and philosophic ideals). It is significant that we begin this transit with the presence of both the North Node and Chiron in Aries, highlighting the necessity of growth and change in the way we relate to our own power. As these transits work their magic throughout the houses holding Aries and Aquarius in our natal charts, we will come to understand the ways in which we can regain a sense of power, personal agency, and connection to the collective that embraces our uniqueness, individual strengths, and deepest humanitarian convictions. It is time to be brave, take risks, and speak our truths. This will not be an easy process, and it will involve a lot of purging, as demonstrated by the October full moon. However, it will also be deeply liberating.

As we approach the end of Pluto’s time in Capricorn (which won’t reoccur during our lifetimes), I encourage you to reflect on the themes of power, control, personal agency, individuality, bravery, connection, and idealism. What cycles, beliefs, and patterns of engagement are you ready to break out of? What are you ready to embrace? You just might be surprised by how radically you (and we as a collective) transform. Although Pluto will hang out in Aquarius until 2043, the North Node and Chiron will move on in early 2025 and 2027, respectively, equipping us with a renewed understanding of who we are, what our purpose is, and how to effectively (and unapologetically) wield our power. Because no matter what anyone tells you, you do have power. But first, you must grant it to yourself. And luckily the stars are here to support us all in this journey of (re)claiming it.